Worcester shooting by trooper an unresolved probe a year later

Friday

Jul 12, 2013 at 6:00 AMJul 15, 2013 at 8:42 PM

By Thomas Caywood, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

WORCESTER — Just after midnight, one year ago today, a rookie state trooper who had been on the job for three months fired a shot through the windshield of a stolen car, killing 43-year-old Victor Davila.

A year later, Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.'s probe of the shooting has yet to reach a final conclusion on whether Trooper Ryan Doyle was justified in firing the deadly shot into Mr. Davila's chest.

The investigation remains open because a woman who was in the car at the time has refused to speak to state police detectives about what happened that morning at the intersection of Chandler and Irving streets, DA's office spokesman Paul Jarvey said.

"Up to this point, the investigation has determined that State Trooper Ryan Doyle was in fear for his life as the vehicle moved toward him, and he acted in self defense," Mr. Jarvey said. "There was no criminal responsibility on the part of the trooper, and the use of lethal force was justified under the circumstances."

However, some people who live in the area told reporters a different version of events the morning of the shooting.

Two witnesses said they saw the trooper standing in front of the car, a Honda Accord, as the driver tried to back up and flee. They said the trooper yelled repeatedly for the man to stop and then fired into the car when he did not comply.

The witnesses said that once the trooper opened the driver's door and pulled the man out, the car coasted forward into a small tree.

Trooper Doyle was returned to duty a few days after the shooting and remains assigned to the Holden Barracks, where he works the overnight shift, said state police spokesman David Procopio.

Mr. Davila's friends and family continue to believe the woman who was in the car, whom they know only as Yomaira, holds answers to what happened that morning.

"I want her to come forward and get this over with. We want justice, to find out why the person had to kill him," said Marie Carmona of Worcester, the mother of Mr. Davila's eldest daughter, 13-year-old Ashley.

Ms. Carmona said she has no reason to doubt that Mr. Davila was driving a stolen car because he was clearly behind the wheel when he was shot, but she wonders if the trooper could have handled the situation another way.

"Victor wasn't a dangerous guy. He was probably just trying to take off to get away," she said. "He could have just let him go and called for back-up to go after him."

Shortly before the 12:10 a.m. shooting, Trooper Doyle tried to stop the 1997 gray Honda after running the license plate and learning that a Leicester man had reported it stolen a few days earlier.

Trooper Doyle was standing on Irving Street when he fired into the sedan. His cruiser was parked around the corner near the entrance to a parking lot just off Chandler Street. It's not clear from available information if the female passenger was in the car when the fatal shot was fired or if she had already bailed out to flee.

State police said there was no evidence to suggest Mr. Davila had been armed.

Brian Trigiano, who lived at the time in a fifth-floor Murray Street apartment facing Irving Street, said he heard a single shot and saw what unfolded next from his open window.

"All I heard was 'Stop,' and then 'bang,'" Mr. Trigiano said. "Then I saw the kid fall to the ground. The trooper was right there. He handcuffed him and cleared the area of people. He did a great job."

Mr. Trigiano said he heard the trooper shout, "stay down," a couple of times right after the gunshot. The trooper then shouted to people at the nearby gas station and asked them what street he was on, he said.

Mr. Trigiano said state troopers interviewed him about the shooting later that morning.

Mr. Procopio, the state police spokesman, said at the time that the trooper fired into the car only after Mr. Davila ignored repeated requests to stop the car, which he said was moving toward the trooper.

The state police detectives assigned to the DA's office who investigated the shooting made many unsuccessful attempts to interview the female passenger through her lawyer, Mr. Jarvey said.

Ms. Carmona said she hopes the woman will change her mind eventually.

"I wasn't there. I can't say what happened. I need her to come forward. She's the only one who knows," she said.

Ms. Carmona said she and her daughter spoke on the telephone to Mr. Davila's mother in Puerto Rico on Mother's Day.

"His mother just broke down crying, so we all broke down crying," Ms. Carmona said. "My daughter still goes to therapy because of this. She thinks about her dad. Sometimes she's still sad. It hurts me to see that."